An Intro to “Dripping”

An Intro to “Dripping” What is Dripping ?

In the world of vaping, “direct dripping” is a term that is casually thrown around in product reviews and YouTube videos with no explanation or even a demonstration of what it is, mystifying every neophyte e-cig user that has ever come across it. This is because direct dripping does not refer to the hardware itself, but to an “outside the box” technique on how it is used.

Click to enlarge

While most vapers are happy with the tried and true atomizer and cartridge combination, some feel that a cartridge does not feed enough eliquid to the atomizer or that the narrow cartridge passages dampen their vapes. Thus, they opt to remove the cartridge from the equation and drip eliquid onto the atomizer wick straight from the bottle. This technique is what is known as direct dripping.

Since taking off the cartridge leaves the atomizer without a mouth piece, it is replaced instead with drip tips. Drip tips are a hollow mouth piece designed specifically for dripping, and it allows eliquid to flow down to the atomizer from an eliquid bottle.

In order to direct drip properly, four to five drops of eliquid should be sent down the drip tip barrel to prime a brand new or recently cleaned atomizer. After that, two or three more drops are used when the flavor begins to dull or the vapor weakens, which usually takes three to five drags. This, of course, means that a bottle of eliquid needs to be kept on hand at all times while vaping.

Care should be used when dripping, however, since pouring eliquid down drip tips too eagerly can easily flood the atomizer, and in the worst case scenario, make the liquid seep down to the battery connection. This can be easily cleaned on manual batteries, which have sealed connections for this very reason, but automatic batteries are a very different story. Due to the vacuum sensors needed to make them work, automatic batteries cannot have sealed connectors, and an eliquid buildup can quickly render them useless. Needless to say, direct dripping should only be done with manual batteries.

As for a flooded atomizer, these are easily identifiable because there will be an audible gurgling when taking a drag or the vape will actually have very little vapor while feeling tick and harsh on the throat. Thankfully, this situation can be easily remedied by wiping the connectors on the battery and atomizer clean and removing the drip tip to blow the excess eliquid from the atomizer unto a paper towel. When blowing off excess eliquid from the atomizer, remember to always blow from the battery end.

While it may seem that direct dripping is a bit of a pain and would only appeal to a few very dedicated vapers, this is actually a skill all electronic cigarette users should learn, and the reason for that is flavors. One of the trickiest parts of vaping is finding the right eliquids to suit your taste, and direct dripping is one of the quickest and most efficient ways to try different flavors. While a cartridge or cartomizer need to be filled up and used up before trying a new flavor, with an atomizer and drip tips all a user needs to do is drip the new liquid, and five to ten puffs later, the new flavor will fully come through. That means never having to wait in order to try out a new liquid from a sampler pack or being able to quickly sample a new flavor from a friend, a vapers gathering or a brick and mortar ecig store.